Foul play eyed in NYC fire that killed woman, teen girl

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A woman and a 17-year-old girl were killed — and three other kids seriously hurt — when a fire ripped through their Brooklyn home early Tuesday in what was being investigated as a homicide, officials and law enforcement sources said.

The blaze erupted inside the three-story house on Fountain Avenue near Liberty Avenue in Cypress Hills around 2:15 a.m., authorities said.

The 36-year-old woman was discovered inside the home and pronounced dead on the scene, cops and sources said.

The teen girl was rushed to Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center, where she was later pronounced dead, police said.

Two other girls, ages 10 and 14, as well as a 9-year-old boy were taken to the same hospital, each in either serious or critical condition, cops said.

A man, whose age is also unknown, was taken to Nassau University Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.

Neighbors said the man, who is believed to be the father of the injured children, was the first person to run out of the burning building — with his arms on fire — before he tried in vain to go back in.

"Why would you run out and not help the kids?" one neighbor asked. "Isn't that your first instinct, the children?"

An accelerant was later discovered at the scene, and the fire is being investigated as a homicide, sources said. The official cause remained under investigation later Tuesday.

All six victims are believed to be related, though police said they were not able to confirm that information.

A dozen FDNY units, including 60 firefighters and EMS workers, responded.

"We did have a very heavy fire at the front door which extended up the staircase to the third floor, entered the second-floor apartment and came out those front windows," FDNY Deputy Assistant Chief Charles Downey told reporters early Tuesday. "So we had fire out the second-floor windows as well."

The blaze was placed under control within about an hour, fire officials said.

Neighbor Jennifer Sule, who has lived on the block for more than 10 years, described the inferno as "explosive."

"I was sleeping but I got woken up by the fire trucks and the exploding windows," Sule said. "It was explosive. It was big — flames came out. Flames came out the windows – that's why there's smoke up the side."

Sule said she recalls seeing the older victim "in passing almost every day."

"She walks down the block, gets the kids," she said. "The kids would play outside and draw hopscotch on the ground. I would see them everyday."

"She was always a nice lady to me. The older one (the 17-year-old) would always babysit when they were working."

The family-owned a deli at the corner of Liberty and Fountain avenues, according to neighbors, who added that they otherwise mostly stayed to themselves.

If foul play is found to be involved, "we just want to make sure justice is done," Sule said.

"It's about the kids," she added. "We want the kids to get better. It might be too late for the [mother] and the guy is going to be fine — it's the kids now. Pray for the kids."

Another local man who declined to give his name, said "the neighbors around here seem to think someone firebombed [the home]."

"I’ve been in this neighborhood over ten years and I’ve seen this neighborhood change and go," he added. "But that family was nice to me when I would go to their store over there. They treated me with respect."

"A 17-year-old lost a life," the neighbor said. "What is that — 12th grade? Gone just like that."

Another fatal fire broke out inside a Bronx building hours later, according to fire and police officials.

The blaze erupted on the third floor of the five-story building on Grant Avenue near East 165th Street in Concourse Village around 7:35 a.m., the FDNY said.

A 70-year-old woman was discovered unconscious and unresponsive, and pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

A dozen FDNY units responded, and the fire was placed under control in less than an hour.

The cause remains under investigation.

Additional reporting by Jorge Fitz-Gibbon